The Shadows of Yashar

The sun broke through the clouds over Rivora, as the small group gathered for departure.

Surprisingly, the mood was lighter than expected.

Marcthain accompanied them as far as the edge of town.

Liviana leaned in close, whispered something in his ear, and kissed him on the cheek.

For a brief moment, the stoic commander completely lost his composure.

“When we come back, there’s no going back for you either, Mister. Just so you know!” she called, laughing, as the group was already heading off.

They passed through the edge of the forest where Lucius and Melissa had stood only days earlier, looking down into the valley. 

Eventually, they reached the clearing where they’d fled through the portal to escape Dionysus’ wrath.

A faint crackling still lingered in the air, and Lucius imagined he could smell honey and sweet wine drifting on the breeze.

“Weird,” murmured Tagunel, brushing his hand over the ground. 

A tangle of vines grew there, which he examined with keen interest.

“I’ve never seen this plant before. Especially not growing in a place like this… fascinating.”

Melissa and Lucius exchanged knowing looks.

“How do you know so much about plants, anyway?” Melissa asked later, as the forest faded behind them and the foothills rose ahead.

“I used to be a gardener in the palace of a regional governor. In the Empire of Animshin, far to the east.”

Tagunel gazed skyward for a moment, a faraway look in his eyes as though remembering another life.

“Then Marcthain took an interest in me… after I wasn’t welcome there anymore.”

“He took an interest in you?” Melissa prodded.

Tagunel gave a crooked grin.

“I knew a lot about plants. Which also meant I knew a lot about Essences. That made me… useful. Looking back, maybe I should’ve just kept watering flowers.”

The others burst into laughter.

As the sun began to set, they made camp on a rocky slope high in the mountains. 

From there, they could look back over Tiberun’s green hills, and out across the barren plains of Yashar.

Down there lay their goal and a land shrouded in foreboding shadows.

Lucius shivered at the thought of what awaited them and even pressed close to Melissa’s warm fur, but the cold refused to leave him. 

By the next day, they finally reached the border of Yashar. 

A tall wooden post marked the line, with a sign nailed to it bearing a curved sword entwined with a snake, and the words beneath:

“Those who come without fear shall leave without a head.”

Melissa snorted softly.

“Well, that’s a warm welcome,” she said drily.

The landscape grew flatter, barer. 

Only grasses and ferns remained, with scarcely a tree in sight and the air was hot and dry.

Clouds of insects buzzed around them. On the distant plains, two-legged animals grazed, with tiny arms and long trunk-like snouts.

Eventually, the terrain changed again, as the dry steppe gave way to marshy wetlands. 

Liviana scanned the roadside, searching for signs.

“It should be around here somewhere…” she murmured.

At last, she spotted a piece of brownish cloth tied to a half-rotted tree stump, almost hidden from view. 

A single word was scrawled across it: Ardor.

“That’s it!” she cried in relief. “This is where we turn off!”

Leaving the road behind, they waded into the swampy ground, where huge mosquitoes harassed them relentlessly.

Lucius raised his hand, ready to cast a fire spell, but Liviana stopped him.

“We can’t risk drawing attention. Just hold on a little longer!”

As the sun disappeared behind a haze of mist, they finally reached the cave. 

Its entrance gaped open in the hillside, barely visible from afar.

“About time!” Melissa groaned. “My hooves are not made for places like this.”

Inside, Tagunel conjured a small light, but the cave was empty.

“Huh. Empty,” Melissa remarked dryly.

Liviana’s expression tightened.

“That… can’t be right. Mar would never send us here for nothing.”

But before they could ponder it further, the sound of hurried footsteps and rattling metal echoed from outside.

They heard someone shouting orders.

And suddenly, the cave was surrounded.

“See? The torture paid off, they actually came!”, a voice called out, filled with gleeful excitement.

“Along with the other goods, they’ll fetch us a handsome sum, hehehe,” someone else added.

Silence fell, as another voice boomed, louder and harsher.

“You’re surrounded. Come out slowly with your hands raised, and we’ll make this quick and painless.”

Lucius glanced at the rest of the group, his heart racing.

“What do we do now?” he whispered.

Melissa’s eyes had already narrowed into sulfur-yellow slits, and her claws extended.

“We fight. What else?” she answered without hesitation.

But Tagunel shook his head firmly.

“A frontal attack would be suicide, no matter how fast you are!”

“Got a better idea?” she snapped back, glaring.

The halfling rubbed his smooth chin, lost in thought.

Suddenly, a flaming arrow shot into the cave, whizzing past Liviana’s right ear and grazing one of her earrings before striking the cavern wall. Liviana let out a startled hiss.

The voice outside spoke again, colder and more menacing than before:

“Seems you didn’t quite understand me, so let me make it simpler. I’m going to count to ten. If I don’t see hands by then, there’ll be no mercy.”

A few seconds of tense silence followed, before the counting began.

“One…”

The group stood frozen in the cave. Tagunel frowned deeply, Melissa stared tensely toward the cave entrance. Liviana leaned against the stone wall, panting and clenching her teeth.

“Two…”

Lucius closed his eyes, fingers brushing over the vials strapped to his belt.

“Three… Four…”

There has to be a way out!

His eyes flicked upward.

A narrow crack in the ceiling let in a faint glimmer of starlight.

It was small, but just large enough for someone to squeeze through.

The problem was, it was too high up.

Not even Melissa or Liviana could reach it, despite their agility.

“Five…”

Lucius pulled one of the small glass vials from his belt, studying it in the dim light.

Suddenly, his eyes went wide and clear, and a spark of hope lit inside him.

“Six…”

“I have an idea!” He burst out, pulling the others close to whisper quickly.

“Seven…”

“Eight…”

“Nine…”

A brief pause.

Then, in a cold, deadly voice, the bandit leader finished the countdown:

“Ten…”

Silence reigned inside the cave.

A faint trickling of water echoed off the stone, and a cool breeze stirred the air.

The sound of bowstrings being drawn.

But before the arrows could fly, the bandit leader noticed soft footsteps approaching the cave mouth.

With a sharp hand signal, he ordered his men to hold.

And with lowered gazes and hands raised, the small group stepped out from the shadows of the cave.